MUSCAT, April 1(Reuters) - Hundreds of Omani protesters
seeking jobs and better wages clashed with security forces in
the industrial town of Sohar on Friday and a man died after
being hit by a rubber bullet, a government source said.

Protesters threw rocks and the troops fired in the air to
disperse them.

The confrontation, which witnesses said police brought to a
halt with water cannon, took place three days after a crackdown
against protesters to try to clear a Sohar roundabout where
about 100 people had been camping out for weeks.

A 25-year-old man injured in Friday's clash later died in
hospital, a government source said. the father of the man,
identified as Khalifa Salim al-Alawi, confirmed the death,
saying he was hit in the head.

He said his son's body would remain in the morgue until the
government investigated the incident.

Activists told Reuters security forces used teargas and beat
some protesters with batons. Eight people were taken to hospital
with injuries and one was in critical condition.

In the capital Muscat, about 150 people gathered outside the
Shura Council, the elected chamber of parliament, late on Friday
but there was no visible security presence, a Reuters witness
said.

Organisers said they were waiting for more protesters to
arrive from Sohar and planned to march on government offices on
Saturday.

Protests against autocratic rulers sweeping the region have
not spared conservative and usually tranquil Oman, at the
southeastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. The ruling dynasty
has long been backed by Washington and also has ties to Iran, a
U.S. rival for influence in the region.

PAY RISE OFFER

The Gulf Cooperation Council has tried to help Oman and
Bahrain, where protesters have been demanding political reforms,
by pledging $20 billion in aid for socio-economic and
infrastructure development.

Sultan Qaboos bin Said offered a pay rise to try to coax
Omanis off the streets but protesters and workers have continued
to hold sit-ins, including at two oil refineries two weeks ago.

Omani protests have centred on demands for better wages,
jobs and an end to corruption. Many have also demanded that the
government be held accountable for the detention of hundreds of
protesters in Sohar.

Oman's public prosecutor said last week several "saboteurs"
were arrested in Sohar

Sultan Qaboos, in power for 40 years, vowed in March to cede
some legislative powers to the partially elected Oman Council,
an advisory body. At present, only the sultan and his cabinet
can legislate and a transfer of powers has yet to be announced.

One witness told Reuters military personnel fired in the air
on Friday only when they failed to disperse the crowd peacefully
after demonstrators left weekly prayers and gathered at the
roundabout which had been cleared by the army on Tuesday.

"It was all going peacefully with the military keeping a
close eye," one witness told Reuters. "But a section of the
protesters started to throw stones and other objects at the
army. Then they responded by firing in the air. Many ran away
but a small crowd remained and continued to protest."

Activists from Sohar told Reuters security forces had
harassed protesters from the very beginning of the sit-in and
they began throwing rocks when they heard live gunfire.

Some of the Friday protesters at the roundabout had set up
road blocks and were charging drivers tolls, witnesses said,
saying they were jobless and needed the money.
(Writing by Erika Solomon and Amran Abocar; Editing by Nick
Macfie)